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Augusta Family Law Blog

On behalf of Debra Bryan, LLC posted in Divorce on Friday, December 12, 2014.

Many Georgia residents have heard it said that half of all marriages in the United States end in divorce, but according to a recent report, that is not really the case. By looking closely at numbers provided by the U.S. Census Bureau, it can be seen that now more than ever, Americans probably should not be concerned about the divorce rate once again surging the way it did in the 1970's and 1980's.

Out of all the couples that got married in the 1970's and 1980's, only 65 percent made it to their 15th anniversary. Although this statistic seemingly paints a bleak picture for future marriages, 70 percent of marriages formed in the 1990's have lasted for at least a decade and a half, and with the way things are going, an even higher percentage for couples married in the 2000's is expected.

On behalf of Debra Bryan, LLC posted in Child Custody on Monday, December 8, 2014.

Parents in Georgia may benefit from learning more about some of the common issues associated with parenting plans, such as child support, child custody, visitation and modifications. The amount of the child support order required by a judge typically depends on evaluating several factors. Some of the different issues that come under consideration for child support calculations may include which parent manages day care expenses, health insurance costs for the child and the income level of each parent.

Parents should note one parent having primary custody over the child does not mean that this parent will bear less financial responsibility to the child. When determining child custody, family courts typically consider the best interests of the child above all else. In addition, family courts may conduct an extensive review of the child's living conditions and the parent's background. In some cases, new circumstances may compel parents to request modifications to a current child custody or support agreement.

On behalf of Debra Bryan, LLC posted in Child Custody on Wednesday, November 26, 2014.

If a grandparent seeks visitation rights in Georgia, it is possible that a judge will grant that request. However, there are guidelines as to how and when a grandparent may be allowed visitation rights to a minor child. If a minor child is living with both parents and the parents are not separated, it will not be possible for a court to grant the request.

In the event that a divorce is pending or there are questions surrounding who gets custody of the child, a grandparent may file a motion to intervene in the case. From there, a judge would consider whether denying visitation would cause harm to the child. This may be established by showing that the child lived with the grandparent for six months prior to the petition. It may also be established by proving that the grandparent provided financial support to the child or a regular pattern of visitation was already established.

On behalf of Debra Bryan, LLC posted in Domestic Violence on Tuesday, November 18, 2014.

When a domestic violence incident takes place in Georgia, police may issue an emergency protection order to the person they believe was the victim in the altercation. An EPO is a temporary order barring the abuser from contacting the victim. Although an EPO cannot physically stop the abuser from coming near the victim, it can allow the victim to have the abuser arrested if they violate the order.

A temporary protective order is usually only valid for about three to seven days. During this time, the victim may decide to seek a long-term protection order. A protection order usually lasts for between one and five years, but there are extreme cases where a judge may decide to issue a lifetime protection order. When the protection order expires, the victim may renew the order if they feel threatened by the abuser.

On behalf of Debra Bryan, LLC posted in Divorce on Wednesday, November 12, 2014.

Divorce agreements or court judgments in a divorce can be modified, either through appealing the court's decisions to a higher court or by filing a motion to modify an aspect of a court's order with the court that issued it. The process differs depending on whether a person is appealing the court's decisions or if they are moving the local court to change a part of the order due to a change in circumstances.

Appeals of court orders are when a person is seeking to overturn a court's judgment by claiming the court made legal errors in its ruling. When appealing, there are strict statutory deadlines. An appeal is commenced by filing a notice of appeal, obtaining transcripts of the relevant proceedings and writing a legal brief. The appeals process can be lengthy. If the appellate court agrees that the judge made legal errors in arriving at his or her judgment, the case will be sent back down to the lower court. This rarely happens, however.

Many military families from Georgia and around the country have unique situations where they were married in one state and currently live in another state. They could even own property in an additional state. This could mean that they have multiple options for where to file for divorce. Since divorce proceedings vary by state, sometimes favoring one spouse over the other, the couple could select the state that best suits their needs.

Another point to consider about the divorce proceedings is transportation. Just because another state may offer more favorable terms does not mean that it is a good idea to file in that state. Traveling back and forth to court can become very costly and even result in lost wages, making the benefits not worth the losses. One party can file for a divorce against a deployed spouse, but some states will simply continue or postpone the case until the spouse returns home.

Military couples who are seeking a divorce often have a difficult decision to make. Because the military frequently moves families to a new state after only a short period, a couple may not have established residency in their current home state. In other cases, the couple may be eligible to file in several different states because they live in one state and hold property in another.

The decision becomes even more important when there are significant differences in divorce laws between states. For example, some states only allow no-fault divorces while others permit fault-based divorces that award more to one of the spouses. Puerto Rico does not divide military pensions in a divorce, which makes this a poor choice of filing location for the non-military spouse.

On behalf of Debra Bryan, LLC posted in Divorce on Monday, October 20, 2014.

Many people in Georgia file for divorces each year. The process can seem daunting for those who have not gone through it before. The law sets out specific grounds and procedures for initiating an action.

The state allows a total of 13 different grounds on which a divorce action can be based. People who file for divorce proceed under one. The first category is that the marriage is irretrievably broken, which is commonly known as a no-fault divorce. The other 12 are fault grounds, and include assertions that the other person did something wrong that caused the breakup. Examples include adultery, imprisonment, drug or alcohol problems, desertion, marriage between too-closely related individuals, impotency, fraud in getting married, the wife being pregnant at the time of marriage without disclosing it to the husband, mental or physical abuse and mental illness.

Military couples who have decided to end their marriage will follow many of the same steps that others would in Georgia. However, a military divorce does involve a few differences. The Uniformed Services Former Spouses' Protection Act is a federal law that applies to all military personnel. This law allows Georgia to treat military retirement pay as property instead of income in a divorce.

Spouses of military personnel who were married for at least 10 years might be able to receive retirement payments directly from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service. The person in the military must have served for 10 years and the service period must have overlapped with the marriage. Spouses who do not qualify might still get a portion of benefits if included in the divorce agreement. The maximum amount of pension income is 50 percent unless child support is also a factor, in which case an ex-spouse could get up to 65 percent of disposable retirement pay.

On behalf of Debra Bryan, LLC posted in Child Custody on Wednesday, October 8, 2014.

Georgia family court judges carefully consider what is in the best interests of a child when deciding with whom the child will live and which parent will enjoy the ability to make major decisions for the child in regards to his or her educational, religious and health needs. Courts can choose to grant several different types of custody.

Legal custody refers to the ability to make decisions on the child's behalf. Judges may grant sole legal custody, in which one makes all decisions without the need to consult with the other, or joint legal custody. In cases in which the court grants sole legal custody, the noncustodial parent will normally still enjoy parenting time with the child. After an order is issued, the court will not change it unless the noncustodial parent is able to prove a material change in circumstances necessitating such a change has occurred.

The law firm of Debra Bryan, L.L.C. in Augusta, Georgia, represents clients in Richmond County, Columbia County, Burke County, McDuffie County, Fulton County, Lincoln County, Wilkes County and the communities of Blythe, Hephzibah, Grovetown, Thomson, Dearing, Waynesboro, Martinez, Harlem, Evans, Wrens as well as area military installations, including Fort Gordon, Hunter Army Field, Fort Stewart, Fort Benning, Fort McPherson and Fort Gillem.